SCBU/NICU babies' mums

If your babies were in hospital for longer than you were, post delivery, where did you stay? Was there somewhere to stay at the hospital? Did you come home?

I stayed in an extra night as a 'lodger' when T was in - what happens in other hospitals?

Thanks, in advance!

I had to come home. S was taken 60 miles away and I was left in our local hospital, When I came out I went home.

slightlymad:

I had to come home. S was taken 60 miles away and I was left in our local hospital, When I came out I went home.

 

Oo that's horrid! Was there no chance of staying with S in the other hospital?

 I couldn't have done it any way I was a single mum of 3 others that were at home. I was never offered to stay there though. I did manage to stay for a couple of days just before she was due to come home, we had lessons on how to deal with a prem baby which was quite good, I was a little too scared to touch her at first!

L was in for 14 weeks, I was in for the first two then sent home.  I visited every day and spent most of the day there and then the last two days before discharge I stayed in a family room to get ready.  I was lucky that I lived only 20 mins away so not too tough.

At our hospital there was a Ronald McDonald house that parents could stay in if they lived far away.

A

I was talking to a mum at bfing clinic a couple of weeks ago - her baby was 8 weeks early so in SCBU for at least a month - she was sent home after only a couple of days and had to go in and visit each day.

Are you still thinking of going private?

I think i could have stayed on the post natal ward for 10 days but my then 2 year old was missing me terribly and it just seemed cruel being on a ward with all those babies.  I went home on day 2 post delivery and thankfully she came home on day 15.  I spent the last 3 nights rooming in with her.  

I just went in to visit as much as i could - cost a fortune in parking and petrol!

Very similar to Zez.

We were transferred far from home too - 70 miles.

We were very lucky as H and I were both allowed to stay on the postnatal ward for 3 nights.  They got full then though so we rented a small flat in the doctors accomodation for a few nights, then roomed in for the last 2 nights in the NICU.

TBH if they had offered us the flat earlier we would have taken it - £19 a night, short walk from the ward and had a TV, microwave etc.  Perhaps there might be something like that available? 

my baby was in hospital for 13 1/2 months from birth to discharge. During that time he was transfered between 3 different hospitals (some multiple times).I was on the postnatal ward for 7 nights but that was due to my condition rather than Luke being in hospital.

When he was cared for in our local hospital I lived at home and communted in daily to visit him (7 1/2 months). there was no option to stay in the hospital, unless you were 'rooming in' (preparing for discharge and stayed a night or 2 to get used to caring for your baby by yourself) 

he was also treated at a regional hospital PICU where they have specialist facilities. I lived away from home in Ronald McDonald House for over 6 months. It was a 5 minute walk to the hospital. If you see the money collection boxes at the till of McDonalds please pop your loose change in them, the houses they fund are a godsend.

he was also treated at a regional NICU. they had parents rooms in the unit but they were all full and so we had to drive home and commute in until a room came available at the RMH.

You can read about our experinces in this article

http://s991.photobucket.com/albums/af40/Susan_Luke/Little%20Bliss%20report/

3 pages, you can click on the image to enlarge the text. we are the second family.

L was in for about 12 days in total.  The unit had two rooming in rooms / rooms for parents from a long way away.  It was a regional unit with lots of south coast mums being brought up to London.  I was in for 4 days, home for one night and back to the post natal ward for another 3/4 days when they realised I was still sick. 

We were local so didn't need any over night stays.  After the 7-9 days on post natal I was home a couple of nights and then back to room in for two nights.  The hospital also has a RMH on the site I believe, but I didn't hear of any scbu mums using it.  We also got very subsidised parking on the site - £10 for a week.  You got that if you were in SCBU or on the childrens ward as we got the same when L was in again for an op at 6 weeks old!

C was in for 4 1/2 weeks, I managed to stay in for just over 3 weeks in the 'rooming in' room as it was empty. I was bf on demand from very early on so struggled to build up a good ebm store. Some of the older nurses didn't like me being in, I got asked could they give ff so that I could go home. The room was never in demand and I stayed  home the last week as a few babies were going home and I knew the room would be needed. They weren't particularly helpful and some would have gladly seen the back of me.

*Carole*:

If you see the money collection boxes at the till of McDonalds please pop your loose change in them, the houses they fund are a godsend.

I didn't realise that's what these collection boxes were for. I'll definately make a donation when I'm next in mcdonalds. xx

in sheffield we got a room because we were out of area.

in leeds and york we commuted every day.

Thanks everyone. I didn't realise what Ronald McDonald hoses were either. I suppose I thought they were a children's home. I'm still looking at hospitals and live in mortal fear of being left to cope with 2 newborns, post c section, on a ward with really overstretched NHS staff. Our insurance (which has recently changed) covers me for the cost of a c section, but not I'm disgusted to discover, the cost of SCBU/NICU for babies born of assisted conception. So I need a hospital with NHS SCBU/NICU facilities just in case. And they also won't cover my costs if the babies are kept in and I'm discharged, even though they would be on the policy, again because they're the result of assisted conception. (And they also won't cover them for anything else for 90 days, all because of how they were conceived. Appalling.) So, I'm having to rethink things. it seems that the most logical thing to do would be to pick the nearest place, which is Watford. I'm so sorry you've all had such a tough time of it. T was only in for a very short te and it was upsetting, and I can't even imagine how hard, and nerve shredding some of your journeys have been, and continue to be. You all have my unswerving admiration. X x x